


Brother Baker

by harryhanlon



Category: One Direction (Band), Radio 1 RPF
Genre: M/M, Sick Fic, also kind of a sad excuse for gryles but what do you want me to do its written already, altho excessive is a pretty strong word idk just like read it if you want to, excessive baking and fawning over nick grimshaw, fiona styles, in the third chapter, there's actually not a lot going on here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-16
Updated: 2014-04-16
Packaged: 2018-01-19 14:22:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1472989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harryhanlon/pseuds/harryhanlon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The team wants to go to Fiona's for dinner but the didn't expect to meet her little brother Harry that has a bit of a crush on one Nick Grimshaw</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Of Surprise Meetings and Car Rides

**Author's Note:**

> im so obsessed with the idea that fiona and harry are related so this is just a lot of self indulgent fic based on that

“So can I get a ride home with you? I wanna have some gal time before team bonding,” Nick clarified.

Fiona looked up from the very important Heat article on David Beckham's thighs she was reading during the news at Nick's pleading face. The team was descending on Fiona's apartment under the pretense of getting closer but in reality they'd been doing the show for over a year and had still never seen her home. She'd been smart about it, always mentioning that her table wasn't big enough for the amount of people bound to arrive with Nick Grimshaw involved or only agreeing to go out after a venue had been decided on. However, she couldn't get out of this one. Nick's bathroom was being redone, Matt's girlfriend's parents were staying the weekend and Aimee had officially turned Ian's living room into her office. Plus it would only be the three of them coming round for dinner, not a full blown event. There was no way out of this one.

“Uhm, I would but I have to pick up my brother from work so there's not a lot of room left, sorry,” she replied.

“Oh where does he work? Is it far? I could sit in the back me, won't make a peep, like I'm not even there.” It's exactly what Fiona's been avoiding. She lives with her teenage brother that has a bit of a crush on Nick and tried to avoid them meeting for as long as possible. He'd never forgive her if she didn't give at least two days warning before a Grimshaw interaction but Fiona was stuck.

“It's just the bakery down the road,” she answered distractedly, trying to find any way to stop Nick from coming with her. “I guess I'll just let him know then,” she said. Matt signaled the end of the news segment and the beginning of Nick's link as Fiona grabbed her phone and left the studio. She scrolled down to 'Tripping Hazard' (a fond family nickname) and pressed the call button.

“Hiiiii, this is Harry leave a message after the tone!”

Fiona swore but composed herself quickly enough to leave a voicemail. “Heya Harry, Nick's coming with me to pick you up and I really hope you get this message before we get there. See you soon.”

She also started typing up a text as she walked back into the booth before Matt pointed at her phone and looked at her like she knew better. She put it away and hoped for a miracle.

* * *

The rest of the show passed without any indication that Harry had gotten the message. Fiona hoped that he heard it and was just too busy to respond but knew it was a stretch. Last time she had even mentioned Nick knowing of his existence there had been a paragraph of exclamation points before any real response. It was happening whether he knew or not because Grimmy was walking toward her with their coats and a smile. “Ready to go Fi?”

“As I'll ever be,” she sighed, grabbing her coat from his hands and leading the way to the lifts. They passed Ian and Matt on the way out and confirmed an early dinner at 4 o' clock. Plenty of time for Harry to calm down and not burst into nervous tears over dinner. She convinced herself it was all going to be okay several times as they walked to the car and got in.

“So he works at the bakery a few blocks away?” Nick asked from the backseat. He'd insisted that it would be easier so no one would have to switch seats. “I think I've been there, never this early though!”

“Yeah, he only works opening shifts so our schedules match up. He can't drive yet but it's alright, he's a great kid I don't mind spending time with him.” Fiona smiled fondly at the memories of Harry's first year and a half living with her. “You know he moved in because he says he wants to be closer to the indie scene?” Nick leaned in with interest. “Yeah, he's been thinking about auditioning for the X Factor recently but I keep telling him it'll ruin all the indie cred he's worked so hard for,” she giggled. They chatted easily as they drove down mildly crowded London roads and she almost forgot about the possible disaster looming ahead.

Once they pulled into the bakery lot and parked, Fiona checked the front windows to find Harry sitting on the sill chatting to his coworkers and watching for her car. She waved at him and he ran out, yelling goodbyes as he tripped over the curb.

“This is fine. Nothing bad is gonna happen,” she mumbled to herself.

“What?” Nick asked as the front door swung open.

“Hiya Fifi! I brought home some bread for dinner tonight because I made a really good batch and I wanted you to taste it! How was work? I didn't get to listen properly this morning because it was a bit hectic but the music was great!” He stopped rambling as he settled into the passenger seat and looked expectantly at Fiona for an answer.

“Hello I'm Nick!” came from the backseat and Harry froze. It would be hilarious if Fiona wasn't seriously worried for his health. His eyes got wider and his cheeks got redder and he might actually explode if he doesn't get some air so she rolled the window down and quickly pleaded with him to breathe.

“Just in and out Haz, it's gonna be okay. Breathe in then out.” Harry nodded in recognition as his first movement and his chest started moving frantically as he tried to get air. “Do you wanna tell me some more about the bread you made?” He shook his head no. “Will you listen if I tell you about work? Will that help?” A nod. “Well today we played some highlights from the 1975's live lounge. They did a really good cover, I can get the songs for you to have later. There was a new caller on Showquizness and she was really sweet so we're probably going to have her on for at least a week.” Harry's breathing slowed as he began to calm down. Guess he didn't get the message then.

“Do you wanna go home? Are you good for me to start driving?” He nodded and Fiona shifted the car into drive, keeping the windows down.

“Is he gonna be okay?” Nick whispered, speaking for the second time.

“Oh yeah, he just doesn't really deal with surprises well. Once our mum brought home a kitten he'd been eyeing at the pet store and he cried for an hour. Nearly drowned the poor thing. He'll be fine once we get home.”

Fiona pressed play on the Coldplay CD that's always in the car for emergencies and they sat back to enjoy the ride.


	2. Dinner 4 5

Upon their arrival Harry bolted from the car and disappeared into the building before Fiona could even shut off the car. Fiona picked up the loaf of bread he left and motioned for Nick to get out, locking the doors behind them.

“He's probably gone to his room so we should wait a bit until we crack into this bread,” she waved the bread bag slightly. “He likes to see immediate reactions to his cooking. Little weirdo.” Nick laughed along with her as they climbed the stairs to the second floor flat.

“Drop your coat anywhere, we'll find a better place for them later. Are you hungry?” Seeing Fiona so relaxed somewhere outside of the studio threw Nick off a little bit. He's always known her as someone that takes a little time to warm up in an environment, but this was her home so naturally she'd be comfortable.

“Yeah, what've you got?” he asked, following her into the kitchen.

“There should be some stuff to make sandwiches somewhere. I'll ask Harry, he's the one that messes with the fridge.” She walked away leaving Nick to explore his surroundings.

The kitchen was small but well stocked with cookware and fresh fruit on the counter. A clean pan sat on the electric stove, presumably for easy access, but otherwise it was a very neat. Novelty magnets held up business cards, appointment notes and a slip of paper with a phone number for 'Beth from hospital – call if non life threatening'. Behind him the doorway led into a main room that held a deep blue couch sat in front of a wooden coffee table and a medium sized flat screen television. The dining table was off to the side next sliding glass doors that led to a small balcony. Blankets were draped over the couch and stacks of CD's sat on most flat surfaces. It was cozy and felt lived in. To the left of the TV a hallway led to what Nick guessed were bedrooms and his suspicions were confirmed when Fiona came out of a doorway followed by Harry who appeared to be speaking very quietly.

“I told you it was very last minute. I couldn't do anything you know how he gets,” Nick overheard. “Either way he's here now and we need cheese for sandwiches.” She paused to listen to a sentence spoken too softly for Nick to hear. “I don't know which one I'm looking for, I figured they'd all be in the same place. Nick, what kind of cheese you want? Harry's making toasties and we've got cheddar, swiss or gouda.”

The kitchen was a little crowded with the three of them standing inside and he could almost feel Harry's cheeks heating up from proximity. “Cheddar's fine for me.”

“And a gouda for me? Thanks Haz,” Fiona said as she led the way out of the cramped space to let Harry get to work. They plopped down on the couch that was much softer than it looked and she turned to Nick.

“So what's up Grim?”

“Okay I've got this idea for a feature and I wanted to run it by you first because you'd be-”

Fiona interrupted, “It's not Fiona's Styles again is it?”

“Hear me out Fi! The nation loves you! Let them into your life and your closet,” Nick nearly yelled.

“No one cares what I'm wearing on a friday night-”

“They could! It could be an interactive feature 'three outfits to choose from only one will be worn by Miss Fifi Styles', theme tune, Fiona's Styles shoutout, done.”

Fiona looked ready to argue again but a plate with a triangle cut sandwich was placed on the couch arm. “We'll discuss it later,” she said through a full mouth.

“Uh, this one is for you?” Nick accepted the trembling plate in front of him and looked at the boy with an unexpectedly deep voice.

“Thanks,” he said with a smile. In response, Harry squeaked a little and dashed back to his room. He was like a shy kitten and Nick was kind of fond of him.

* * *

Sandwiches finished and plates put in the sink, they discussed the possibility of a new feature some more and Fiona eventually agreed. Work done and over with, it was time to think about team dinner.

“I can't really cook so we can order in? Chinese maybe?” Fiona suggested.

“A great idea Fifi! Putting that mind of yours to good use,” Nick agreed.

“Shut up. I'll be right back.” She walked to the door Nick assumed was Harry's and knocked. “Hey, me and the team are gonna order in, you want anything?” The door swung open.

“I was thinking about making a lasagna tonight though,” Harry said, hidden from Nick's view. “I can make enough for your friends if you want? Maybe a salad as well, we just got some good lettuce and then garlic bread with the one I just brought home? If that's okay?” he finished somewhat hesitantly.

“Yeah, that's awesome. I probably should have checked with you first, I just wasn't sure how you were dealing you've been in your room the whole time.”

“I'm fine,” he squeaked back. “I'll start cooking in 20 minutes then?”

“Whenever you want,” Fiona nodded.

“Okay so 20 minutes, I'll be out.” He shut the door and Fiona walked back to the couch to sit with Nick.

“Good news, no takeaway cause Harry's cooking tonight. Lasagna!” She turned on the TV and started flipping through channels for anything that could interest them until Ian and Matt turned up. Nick shifted to pose a question.

“Is he always this shy? Your brother?” he asked.

“Hmm? Oh, no, usually a riot that one. Bit starstruck today though, used to watch you on telly didn't he,” she explained, still focused on the screen. Nick considered her words and fell silent. He was going to get Harry to be comfortable with him by the end of the night.

* * *

By the time Matt and Ian arrived, the lasagna was in the oven and the flat smelled amazing.

“Fiiiiii,” came from the kitchen and Fiona excused herself from the round of Uno (Ian's contribution)to check in on Harry.

“What's wrong,” she asked, hopping on the counter.

“Has Nick said anything about me?” Harry picked at a lose thread on a nearby dish rag.

“Oooh is someone nervous around their crush?” Fiona teased playfully. Harry hit her in the arm and whined a bit.

“Fi I'm serious! I don't want him to think I'm weird or something.”

“Too late for that Haz. I'm kidding,” she added seeing his face fall. “He thinks you're fine, honest.”

“Really?” Fiona could see the hope in his eyes.

“Yeah, really.”

“Okay well, dinner's almost ready so when we sit down can I sit next to him?”

“Oooh Hazza and Grimmy sitting next to each other! Will sparks fly?” She received another slap on the arm. “Okay fine yes. Someone's extra touchy tonight.”

“Go away, tell your 'team' to get ready to eat,” he huffed. Fiona quietly laughed herself out of the room.

“Dinner's nearly ready,” she called to the three men crouched over the coffee table, “Places are already set so just come sit down, I guess.”

Once everyone else was seated Harry came out of the kitchen in a red lace-trim apron Fiona rolled her eyes at because she knew it was just to get Nick's attention. Her brother may be thrown off balance but he's not Harry Styles if he doesn't turn on the charm.

“Looks good,” Ian said, breaking the silence.

“Harry's food is always good! He wants to go into music but I keep saying he could open his own restaurant,” Fiona supplied. Harry blushed and set down the steaming lasagna pan.

“It's just out of the oven so it's hot but you can start on salad or garlic bread while it cools down.” Everyone else dug into the food on the table and engaged in idle chatter about work and girlfriends as Harry observed. Nick was the first to speak up about the meal.

“You made this bread? It's amazing,” he said incredulously. “You should definitely go into cookery if all of your food is this good.” Harry blushed again and stuttered out gratitude as the rest of the table agreed.

“So, Fifi said you were interested in music?” Matt questioned with a half full mouth.

“Uh, yeah. I, um, I came out here with Fi to, er, be closer to the, uh, music scene and stuff so yeah.”

“No need to be so nervous, we're all friends here,” Nick reassured him with an elbow nudge. Harry's already red face coloured a shade darker.

“I, uh, okay,” he replied. The conversation continued, Harry gaining confidence over time and even cracking a few jokes by the end.

* * *

“Well, that was a great meal but I should be getting home to Aimee soon. My boyfriend duties await,” Ian said, standing up to grab his coat and head out. A murmur of agreement passed around the table and everyone slowly began gathering their things. Fiona and Harry led their guests to the door to say their goodbyes.

“See you at work tomorrow, nice meeting you,” Matt and Ian said in turn, walking down the hall to the stairs.

“Especially great meeting you tonight, Harry. Hope to see you again in the future?” Nick inquired.

“Yeah. I mean- yeah, definitely, of course,” he rambled in return. Nick smiled and turned away.

“Bye Nick!” Fiona yelled after him.

“Bye Fifi!” Nick called back.

Once they shut the door Fiona turned to look at Harry with a smirk. He shrugged at her and skipped down the hall to his room without a word.

If he texted all his friends about it after, his sister didn't have to know.


	3. In Sickness and Warm Germy Blankets

Harry felt his phone vibrate with a text as he rolled out croissant dough from last night's refrigeration.

_Are you listening to radio???_

give me a sec xx

_:)_

Harry took a break to turn on the radio in the back room that was always tuned to Radio 1 and kept one ear listening as he returned to pastry prep. They were in the middle of waking up Sandy from Cornwall with DJ Snake. The music changed as they did their last wake up for the morning.

“And good morning to Harry in London this morning!” Nick said in his overly cheery voice.

“Morning Harry,” Matt and Fiona added one after the other.

“Harry's working at a bakery this morning! I guess he should already be awake then, don't fall asleep on a pastry. He also sent us in about 4 dozen cupcakes to the office, thanks there. I've ate about 2 ½ already-”

“Five!” Fiona interrupted, her smile obvious even over the radio.

“Okay five. Put me right off my diet you have. Fiona says you wanted Jack Whitehall to wake you up but I'm mad now. Won't do it.”

“Nick,” Matt warned.

“Alright okay a little bit of Jack Whitehall to wake up Harry this morning!” The clip played followed by the crash indicating the end of the segment and the beginning of Dark Horse by Katy Perry.

Harry excitedly texted Fiona back with a series of exclamation points and went back to rolling out dough. Nothing at all could crush his mood.

 

* * *

 

Weeks later, once the excitement of dinner and dozens of cupcakes faded, Fiona showed up to work with watery eyes and a rattling cough.

“Go home,” Matt said stepping back as she sneezed way too close to him. “You're miserable and you're just going to spread it round the office.”

“I can work though! It's not too bad yet, I can-”

“Go. You can take a day off and we can't risk Nick getting sick right now either,” Matt interrupted with an air of finality. Fiona's shoulder's slumped and she grabbed her bag from her chair, secretly kind of excited to spend a day at home. There was a lot of TV building up for her to watch.

Once she got down to her car her pocket buzzed with a message.

_Webs the earliest u can get me? Barb sent me home :(_

_when's*_

on my way now

_ok cool_

Harry was sick too but they had both buckled down and opted to go into work. It was just as well they were both going to be home as Fiona wasn't sure if she would have had the energy to go back out to pick him up. She sneezed one last time and pulled onto the motorway, avoiding the disease droplets covering the steering wheel.

When she drove up to her usual spot Harry was already looking miserably out of the front shop window. He slowly stood up, waved at everyone inside and trudged out to the car. “This sucks,” he said forcefully. “I didn't even cough on the food I totally turned away from it.” He sniffled a little bit and continued, “Barbra sent me with some soup though. It's still hot but we could could also heat it up later. There's kind of a lot.” He coughed and nearly smacked his head on the dashboard.

“We should get home,” Fiona said, already reversing out of the lot. “You can do the soup while I grab all the blankets and move them to the couch.”

“Operation: Get Well Soon?” Harry asked hopefully.

“Yup,” she confirmed. Operation: Get Well Soon (O:GWS affectionately) was started by their mother when Gemma used to get sick as a child. Fiona hadn't been annoying or sick enough to get a special system laid out for her colds. She didn't place herself in the middle of the busiest areas in the house and sneeze on all the furniture like Gemma was wont to do. Anne decided enough was enough and that if anyone developed a sickness O:GWS would begin immediately. The procedure is taped on their fridge and are as follows.

Step 1: Wrap the sick person in as many blankets as possible and put them in the living room if 2 or more sick people bundle them together)

Step 2: Make chicken noodle soup and pour off the excess broth into a separate bowl. Noodles and broth should be eaten in alternating turns. (If a non-sick person is unavailable make the soup as step 1)

Step 3: Turn on the TV to their favourite movie or a DVD of a show to be playing constantly. There should never be an entertainment-less moment.

Step 4: Place tissues in an easy to reach area that isn't resting directly on a body part

Step 5: Check in every 15 minutes without being invasive unless they need something or medicine needs to be administered.

The system's been working for upwards of 17 years and Harry hasn't known anything different so they're not about to defer from it.

* * *

Soup on the burner and blankets slowly piling up on the couch and surrounding area, the siblings began to feel a little bit like kids again. “Gogglebox reruns are on! We could watch that or one of the DVDs. The reruns are on marathon if that makes any difference,” Fiona called to Harry who was stirring the pot in the kitchen.

“Marathon means less effort,” he replied weakly. “Less disruption of our setup.” Fiona settled on the channel and began fluffing pillows to stabilize the blanket cocoon they were making.

3 hours later they had empty bowls, cold soup in the kitchen, the short term memory of 6 Gogglebox episodes and a sea of tissues littered around them.

“June may get annoyed with him but she really does love Leon,” Fiona weeped at the ending of the most recent segment.

“Same with Steph and Dom. How would they even go on without each other,” Harry sobbed back wiping furiously at his eyes. Sickness had left them vulnerable and the happiness of the show's couples made them feel particularly lonely. Neither of them had had much luck in love recently besides Harry's brief hope of something starting with Nick and even that dream was dying out.

Just before the Gogglebox music started there was a knock at the door. They shared a look battling silently on who should get up to get it.

“Hello?” a voice that was distinctly Nick Grimshaw called through the door. Harry's eyes widened and he got up as quickly as he could, tangling himself in a well packed blanket and tripping into the door. Fiona laughed herself into another coughing fit as Harry pulled open the door and leaned on the wooden reinforcements.

“Hey,” he said in a voice that he hoped sounded seductive. Nick looked surprised to see him at the door.

“Hiya! I brought some soup and cold tablets for your sister and you as well I suppose. This is just a sick house today isn't it,” he said gently pushing past Harry into the house. Harry smiled at the contact and trailed after Nick into the main room.

“Hey Grim,” Fiona greeted him from the partially dismantled blanket burrito. “Should you be here? Finchy said he didn't want you getting sick.”

“Am I going to let Matt Fincham dictate my life Fifi? Let me live free! I wanted to visit my favourite person because I heard you were sick. Kill me for showing a little compassion,” Nick explained dramatically. “I might as well leave if I'm not wanted.”

“No! Stay!” Harry said quickly, all forms of shyness from the last time they met broken down by sickness. “You can help us with O:GWS!”

“What on Earth is an Og-wuss?”

“It's a sick plan our mother came up with when we were kids,” Fiona said still half paying attention to the TV. Harry led Nick to the fridge where they kept the laminated checklist. Nick realized it was laminated for a reason as soon as Harry sneezed unbridled.

“Sorry,” he said with a stuffed nose and a weak smile. Nick was endeared even though he was probably going to get horribly sick from this interaction.

“It's okay. What's the next step?” he asked. Harry explained the way soup had to be prepared and Nick decided this was definitely worth the cold.

When Fiona checked on them after 15 minutes of silence and saw Harry dozing leaning on Nick's shoulder with Nick carefully petting his hair and smiling gently, she knew they wouldn't be crying over couples together in sadness much longer.


End file.
